Small stream restoration project - a Musky tributary

[Bucksnbows]

We've been working on West Portal Brook, a Musconetcong River tributary that has native brook trout in it that flows through a few dairy farms.  Many partners over the years have worked hard to restore the water and soil resources on this 5th generation dairy farm in Asbury, NJ.  The farmer has been a great partner in conservation and his will be the first River Friendly Farm in the Musconetcong watershed.  The final pieces after numerous riparian buffer plantings to shade the river, filter runoff from fertilizers and pesticides on the crops, and to provide deep roots to hold the stream banks, was to restore both the Musconetcong River that flows along this property for about 1/3 mile which we performed last November and to restore West Portal Brook this week into early next week.  Over the last 15 or so years, Trout Unlimited and many partners also worked to fence the cattle out of the stream, provide cattle crossings and watering systems so the cows no longer need to stand in the trout stream, and worked on cow manure management so that it wouldn't wind up in the stream.  

 

I'll post pictures shortly.   

[Rusty]

Can't wait to see the pictures. 

[Bucksnbows]

I mentioned it is a working dairy farm.....

 

 

And sometimes not all cows make it......

 

 

While working the first 3 days, we were serenaded by both Canada and snow geese as well as various ducks coming in to the cut corn and soybean fields all day long:

 

 

 

 

And sometimes we found time to get the skid steer stuck up to the axles in mud.  We needed it to get boulders to spots along the stream where no other vehicle other than the track excavator could get to.  Yes, I brought large chains

 

 

And we also found time between watching geese to drive the excavator carefully through the riparian buffer plantings.  The trees you see were planted by Trout Unlimited volunteers, SCA (student conservation association) and corporate volunteers I led over the last 7 years using Farm Bill, US Fish & Wildlife and other funding sources to begin to restore this gem of a native and all wild brook trout stream.

 

 

 

 

We even found a great spot to add a vernal or ephemeral pool for amphibian habitat next to this stream.  

 

 

More as we wrap up by Monday.  We knocked off early today with the snow and toured our next restoration sites, both on the Musky, at both Point Mountain TCA and downstream on the Wattles property which is state land that NJ Audubon manages.  That project after June 15th of this coming summer.   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[BowhunterNJ]

So that's what water looks like when it's not frozen huh!  All we have around here is snow and ice!  

Great pictures and an even greater cause with what you guys are doing up there!  You have a very cool job!

[Kype]

you do some awesome work. would love to get involved with projects like this. 

[Sotaroas]

Great pics ! How do you get involved in work like that ? What type of background, education, etc. Great to see someone that really enjoys what they do !

[LittleM]

Nice work B&B!  You know any of the Audubon folks at Wattles?  One of the guys that works there is a good friend of mine.  He knows a little about venomous snakes, in addition to birds.

[Bucksnbows]

Nice work B&B!  You know any of the Audubon folks at Wattles?  One of the guys that works there is a good friend of mine.  He knows a little about venomous snakes, in addition to birds.

 

I know all of them, in fact  John P, Dan D or other?  I know and work in various ways with many of them from that Stewardship Center on river restoration, riparian health, healthy forests initiatives, critical lands protection, and in our public/private partnership creating early successional forest habitat for golden winged warbles and other birds and critters in and adjacent to Sparta Mountain WMA.    

 

We are doing a one mile section of the Musconetcong River on the Wattles tract because of our friends at NJ Audubon.  That project is tentatively slated for the 3rd week in June and will go about 9 days or so.  We walked it yesterday in the snow, as a matter of fact.  Wanted to get my track excavator operator and my project implementation team to put their eyes on it since it is our next big project here in NJ.    

[Bucksnbows]

Great pics ! How do you get involved in work like that ? What type of background, education, etc. Great to see someone that really enjoys what they do !

 

I have a degree in political science, so I'm qualified to do exactly nothing     Actually, for the last 7 years I've been a river restoration specialist for the non-profit conservation organization, Trout Unlimited (TU) here in NJ working mostly in the Musconetcong watershed restoring the river and its riparian areas, removing obsolete dams, and protecting coldwater resources as needed throughout the watershed, much of which is a federally designated Wild & Scenic River.  I now head sales and marketing for the firm out of Bozeman, MT that I have been using, Urbani Fisheries, LLC.  This project we're working on now was one of my projects under my TU job.  I am still wrapping up projects I started while on staff there as well as new projects with Urbani Fisheries.  

 

But our team has on it a hydrologist, a site remediation specialist, a fisheries biologist, a fluvial geomorphologist who designs our restoration plans, a pond specialist, me, and a machine operator that only works in river restoration over the last 38 years.  I just recently made the move from corporate sales to river restoration about 7+ years ago and now find myself back in sales, but in a field I am passionate about.  Basically, I get to play in trout streams most every day and get paid to do it.  Whether walking it with the landowner(s) for the first time as I did part of today for a potential new project, walking it for a permit review or funder review, restoring it, or fishing it later to see how we did, I'm in waders a lot of my time.    

[Sotaroas]

BnB's thanks for reply, quite interesting, sounds like you really enjoy what you do ! Thanks again !